The single worst thing Trump could have done: Boasting he pays no income tax

[chuckChuck]

The single worst thing Trump could have done: Boasting he pays no income tax

He fell right into the trap Clinton set - and offended honest American taxpayers. Game, set, match

John Ibbitson

The Globe and Mail Last updated: Tuesday, Sep. 27, 2016 7:12PM EDT

During Monday’s debate – which Hillary Clinton emphatically won in front of an audience of 80 million – Donald Trump handed his opponent a stick with which she will beat him from now until Nov. 8: He admitted he pays no income tax.

At one point in the debate, Ms. Clinton listed all the possible reasons why Mr. Trump had broken with four decades of precedent by refusing to make his tax returns public. Maybe he wasn’t as rich as he claimed, she suggested; maybe he didn’t give to charity; maybe he didn’t want people to know how much money he owed. And then this happened:

Yes, he said: “That makes me smart.”

She pounced:

Note to advisers in both camps: There is no trap into which Donald Trump will not leap.

“That’s not going to go away,” the conservative American commentator John Podhoretz predicted. He’s right. Imagine: You have no voice, because the system has its boot on your neck. Donald Trump promises,”I will be your voice.” But now he’s boasting about being a tax cheat – because when a rich person doesn’t pay income tax, that’s cheating, whatever the lawyers and accountants say. He boasts about it. This is the soul’s dark night.

Vice President Joe Biden flayed Mr. Trump’s tax dodge Tuesday in a brimstone speech of righteous anger:

Mr. Trump provided Ms. Clinton with other ammunition during the debate: Insulting yet another judge. Bragging that he profited from the misery of the last recession, which threw millions out of work and plunged millions of mortgages underwater. Accusing Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen of manipulating interest rates for political ends.

And this: Ms. Clinton told the story of how Mr. Trump, when he was involved with the Miss Universe pageant, bullied and tormented Alicia Machado, Miss Universe 1996. Furious at the disclosure, Mr. Trump doubled down Tuesday by explaining himself like this:

She gained a massive amount of weight, and it was a real problem.

For the love of….

But even considering all of that ammunition, what matters most is that Hillary Clinton accused Donald Trump of not paying any income tax. And his response is worth repeating here:

“That makes me smart.”

Golly.

[sumdumguy]

Yep, I agree, Done -like dinner! He is not too bright.

[furrowtickler]

We in Canada accept that , in fact we put them in as finance ministers .... Paul Martin and his ships

[nicolaas]

I did not realize Trump was such a crumby debater. He came across as belligerent and rambling, while Hillary was mocking and smug. She has such a load of dirt on her that she should have lost the debate against someone who can carry on a discussion. That's trumps problem, being surrounded by yes men all his life, use to lecturing, not listening and assembling rational thought. I still think that Hillary is so unpalatable to most people that she may still lose the presidency. The next debate should be better, I think that Trump will practice a bit now.

[sumdumguy]

CNN report says he goes in uncoached and unrehearsed, so totally unprepared - BIG MISTAKE because Hillary has a history for sure and she was not averse to using his history to attack him. The conversation on TV was around the fact that he is used to being high man on the totem pole and he is not used to taking advice from anyone. If he doesn't figure it out he will be history.

[Tucker]

I think it's amazing that people are trying to decide who won that debate. I'm incredibly impressed with the fact that Trump didn't get completely annihilated by a lifelong deceitful career politician who has been through 15 debates at this same level. Especially since it was a two on one debate. That moderator should be ashamed at his level of anti-Trump actions.

[grassfarmer]

I think it's amazing that people are trying to decide who won that debate.

They aren't - it was obvious to anyone who watched it.

[farmgal71]

Tucker,

I think he damaged his credibility all by himself on the big stage.

[Ache4Acres]

Trump blew it. Unprepared. Clinton made him
Look like an idiot. Very poor performance. Can possibly recover but he sure did not help himself.

To me it almost seemed like he does not actually want to be president. He loves the attention of the election race, but would not like the responsibility of a presidency.